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Televised tournaments like this month's PGA championship project images of golfers in top shape -- suggesting the sport must be great exercise.It can be, but an over-reliance on golf carts, aversion to the gym, and excessive alcohol and junk food consumption contribute to the alarming fact that 66% of golfers are overweight.
"The results almost made us drop our hot dogs and hi-cal drinks and sit up in our Barcaloungers: Quite simply, we're in terrible shape," lamented Golf Digest, reporting on their survey of 514 golfers (80% male, average age 52.7).Among respondents, 19% have never set foot in a gym; 18% always use a cart; 29% buy hot dogs and 16% buy a beer on the course, while 9% have drunk 10 or more beers during a round.With such habits, no wonder nearly 1/4 suffer from high blood pressure and cholesterol.
Avid golfers can lower their health handicap by eschewing the cart and carrying their own clubs -- doubling the energy burn to 6 calories a minute, which could add up to as many as 1,800 calories burned over the course of a four to five hour game.While Mark Twain knocked golf as "a good walk spoiled," the health benefits of walking are nothing to sneer at: Brisk, regular walking can increase brain size, lower blood pressure, and even reverse age-related aerobic decline.
For maximum benefit, vary your exercise, by adding strength training, biking, volleyball, surfing, and soccer (rated best-all-around sport for fitness).Not only does variety reduce dementia risk -- it also prevents over-reliance on one sport to meet your fitness needs.
For example, even a king-of-cardio sport like biking won't provide the bone-building impact needed to prevent osteoporosis..
